RHIANNON COOPER Somerville: Don’t let justice system let down victims

The mother of my best friend, Erin Downing, was viciously murdered by then 15-year-old Edward O’Brien in 1995.

Janet was the kind of mom who was very concerned with us young teens learning to be aware of our surroundings. Our safety in this sometimes evil world was paramount to her. No matter how tired Janet was after working all day herself, she always made sure that every one of Erin’s young co-workers had a ride home at night after work.

It boggles my mind that a woman who was so aware of what could happen to us was taken from this world in such a brutal way.

In 1997, O’Brien was sentenced to life without parole for killing Janet. But, now thanks to the Supreme Judicial Court’s Christmas Eve decision, he may walk free. This is not justice for Janet’s family.

They’ve had close to two decades to try and put their lives back together without Janet. It breaks my heart that she never got to see Erin graduate from college or her grandchildren grow.

I love you, Erin. I’m sorry that our justice system is letting you, your family, and other families of murder victims down like this. It is truly sad that society as a whole will be let down as well.